You would think some of these football & hockey players who have played with horrific injuries would come out & tell Lebron to toughen up. But of all people this guy??? Just like Pouncey you have to know when to keep quiet. Lebron might be soft but Martin is still in a class by himself.

I'm surprised anyone would question Lebron James' toughness. There is nothing that would keep players like he and Michael Jordan off the court.

My guess is that Martin has only had a cramp to the smooth muscle tissue ... LOL!

Quote:

A cramp is a sudden, severe, and involuntary muscle contraction or over-shortening; while generally temporary and non-damaging, they can cause mild-to-excruciating pain, and a paralysis-like immobility of the affected muscle(s). Onset is usually sudden, and it resolves on its own over a period of several seconds, minutes, or hours. There are two major categories of cramps: causes of skeletal muscle cramps include muscle fatigue, and/or a lack of electrolytes (e.g., low sodium, low potassium, and/or low magnesium); cramps of Smooth muscle tissue may be due to menstruation or gastroenteritis.

My bias.... cant stand him , cant stand the Heat , cant stand Pat Riley. Yes he is the best player in the league but he has Tin Mans disease.Cant wait for ESPN to shut down again awaiting his next "Decision". Just as long as he does not come to the Knicks. I know he is second in command to God status behind Marino so I will take the feedback but as far as all time greats in any sport he lacks what Eddie Martel lacks. (Ask Jimmy McGinty)#Lebronning

My bias.... cant stand him , cant stand the Heat , cant stand Pat Riley. Yes he is the best player in the league but he has Tin Mans disease.Cant wait for ESPN to shut down again awaiting his next "Decision". Just as long as he does not come to the Knicks. I know he is second in command to God status behind Marino so I will take the feedback but as far as all time greats in any sport he lacks what Eddie Martel lacks. (Ask Jimmy McGinty)#Lebronning

I do not understand the hate for LeBron, he is one of the few inner city kids turned pro superstar that has had his head on straight his entire career, and doesn't have a single instance of trouble with the law. The guy deserves respect.

I think Lebron's a nice friendly guy. Showed immaturity early in his career when he'd leave after a loss without shaking hands. What he is not is a killer or assasin on the court ...the way Jordan was. He doesn't have the demeaner that he would have needed to play against the bad boy Pistons and Charles Oakley types that wanted to fight and take your head off. The league had a killer instinct back then. It was alot like city street ball when Jordan played.

I'm sorry Mak. Everyone else was playing in the same environment. Everyone else did not cramp up. These guys grew up playing ball on street courts in the middle of the summer. No excuse here. Mark Jackson said it best, "The great ones have to find a way to tell their body Not now. After the game." He couldn't do it.

Jonathan Martin is 6'5 312 lbs. Lebron James is 6'8 and 260 lbs. A 50 pound difference is pretty big.

I'm sorry Mak. Everyone else was playing in the same environment. Everyone else did not cramp up. These guys grew up playing ball on street courts in the middle of the summer. No excuse here. Mark Jackson said it best, "The great ones have to find a way to tell their body Not now. After the game." He couldn't do it.

Jonathan Martin is 6'5 312 lbs. Lebron James is 6'8 and 260 lbs. A 50 pound difference is pretty big.

That comparison is so off base, you're comparing a player who plays the vast majority of the game to people coming off the bench? Not to mention LeBron's style of play, no one plays on such a fast pace as him...constantly charging towards the paint and attacking the rim gives up a little more energy than sitting behind a 3 pt line and being a facilitator.

Would be interesting to see Lebron playing in the West. There is really only one decent team in the East.

I don't think it would be interesting at all. His skill set and abilities are better than the West's best superstars. Durant is a one dimensional player when you compare him to someone like LeBron.No reason he would not dominate the West as well. He put down their top two teams in consecutive seasons, and is going for the same feat a third time.

Miami wouldn't coast to the finals every year if they had to play in the west. Too many pitfalls to trip you up.

I'm not saying he would coast, but he would definitely dominate in either conference. There is no doubt about it, the guy has 11 seasons of excellence to back his case up. Miami just so happens to be far and away the best team in their conference, and they get $#&% for it. Makes absolutely no sense.

In my opinion and to address this topic, it is really ignorant to question Lebron James reasoning to come out of a critical finals game. Has anyone ever experienced severe muscle cramping? I have and you are virtually helpless and NO ONE wants to be out there more than that guy does to help his team win.

Also, James is looking to THREE PEAT with Championship rings, so hard to question is ability to win big games. There are always negative people to chime in on their opinions out in the sports fan world, but have a little smarts before picking on this one.

Oh and I am a New York Knicks fan, so this isn't even about being a Heat fan for me, it is just being realistic.

The Spurs on the other hand are a very viable deserving threat to potentially win this series, but being practical it is only game won and the Heats best player was absent the final minutes of a critical stretch of that game 1. Look for a dog fight moving on.

Cramps are about hydration in the days leading up to a game. If you know you are going to be playing in a hot environment, then you start hydrating your body days before, not the day of or during.

So LeBron should've prepared for the inevitable shut down of the AC system in the arena?

Not real sure what your reply has anything to do with what I posted.

"If you know you are going to be playing in a hot environment, then you start hydrating days before, not the day of or during". Sounds to me like that quote was directed at LeBron for not properly preparing for a faulty arena AC system.

"If you know you are going to be playing in a hot environment, then you start hydrating days before, not the day of or during". Sounds to me like that quote was directed at LeBron for not properly preparing for a faulty arena AC system.

It was a general info on hydration and the ignorance Martin displayed about hydration.

However, LeBron knowing he would be playing a BB game, should have already hydrated himself. Him cramping is all on him unless he has an undisclosed medical issue.

The Heat coast to the finals in the east. Whoever comes out of the west is a bit battle worn & bruised. The west is a dog fight. Another reason why I think the Heat have the edge. In the east the regular season does not mean a thing , Miami proved that by giving home court to Indiana.While Lebron still might be the best player in the league ... the other "teams" in the west would overcome him & the Heat being in the finals would not be the lock it is now while they are in the east.

James, whose cramping in the fourth quarter of Thursday night’s Heat-Spurs game kept him out of the final minutes, has a long history of cramping — most notably during the NBA playoffs. In 2012, he also had to be carried off the floor during Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

But perhaps no meme will be more memorable for this Finals series than the image last night of a cramping James heading to the locker room as his team fell to the Spurs on a court with temperatures nearing 90 degrees.

“He doesn’t cramp up more than anyone else,” said Maharam, the past medical director of the New York City marathon. “Anyone else who is exerting themselves at the top of the game … if you ever go out to a marathon or a half marathon I’d say about 70 percent are cramping up and that’s because they’re exerting over a good amount of time. LeBron gives his all. And when you’re giving it your all you lose electrolytes and you sweat. And when you lose electrolytes and you sweat, you cramp.”

He told ESPN's Brian Windhorst after the game that he knew it was coming:

"It's something you try to prevent, I got all the fluids I need to get ... I lost all the fluids I was putting in the last couple of days. It was inevitable for me tonight."

LeBron has a history of cramping. According to Windhorst, the Miami Heat have kept their own arena "legitimately cold" before playoff games ever since LeBron had to come out of a 2012 Finals game with cramps.

The Heat coast to the finals in the east. Whoever comes out of the west is a bit battle worn & bruised. The west is a dog fight. Another reason why I think the Heat have the edge. In the east the regular season does not mean a thing , Miami proved that by giving home court to Indiana.While Lebron still might be the best player in the league ... the other "teams" in the west would overcome him & the Heat being in the finals would not be the lock it is now while they are in the east.

The Heat coast to the finals in the east. Whoever comes out of the west is a bit battle worn & bruised. The west is a dog fight. Another reason why I think the Heat have the edge. In the east the regular season does not mean a thing , Miami proved that by giving home court to Indiana.While Lebron still might be the best player in the league ... the other "teams" in the west would overcome him & the Heat being in the finals would not be the lock it is now while they are in the east.

Big deal. You can say the same thing for Jordan's Bulls. They're guilty by by being too day'um good. What a shame.

The Heat coast to the finals in the east. Whoever comes out of the west is a bit battle worn & bruised. The west is a dog fight. Another reason why I think the Heat have the edge. In the east the regular season does not mean a thing , Miami proved that by giving home court to Indiana.While Lebron still might be the best player in the league ... the other "teams" in the west would overcome him & the Heat being in the finals would not be the lock it is now while they are in the east.

Big deal. You can say the same thing for Jordan's Bulls. They're guilty by by being too day'um good. What a shame.

You're showin your age man if you're doggin those Cavs and any Reggie Miller led team. Those Pacers actually got to the finals.

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Better than "The Shot" Cavs of 1988-89, who fell a Michael Jordan jumper short of possible greatness? That team rolled to 57 wins, sporting an all-star lineup that featured Brad Daugherty, Mark Price, Larry Nance, Ron Harper and John "Hot Rod" Williams. Sports Illustrated predicted it would be the team of the '90s.

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LENNY WILKENS, CAVS COACH, 1986-87 TO 1992-93"The Shot" team in a seven-game series against the current Lebron-led Cavs?

"I like our chances," said Wilkens. "I would stack that team up against anybody."Besides points and rebounds, he said, Daugherty was among the best passing centers in the game. He and point guard Price had their pick-and-roll game down to a science. Then, with the athleticism of Harper and Nance, and with Craig Ehlo, Mike Sanders and Williams off the bench. . . ."It would be a helluva match," Wilkens said.